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Although not in the art world, I spend a lot of my time working through professional ethics issues and I have to be honest: I don't see an inherent ethics issue here. China is a huge country containing almost 100 different ethnic groups and almost 1/6th of the world's humans. The vast majority of us will agree that the chinese government is oppressive and the detention of Ai Weiwei is a human rights issue. But to suggest that any business who has anything to do with something chinese has an ethical issue if they choose not to formally protest Ai's detention is totally preposterous. China has contributed immensely to the international art world and to imply that no museum can show their work without formally addressing the issue of Wei's detention just leads me to think that people are going out looking to create an ethics issue where none really exists.

Sorry guys, I know you enjoy protesting things, but I think you are exposing your lack of understanding of ethics.

1. I don't understand how this story could be written without mentioning that this was the guy threating to leave Milwaukee if the Bronze Fonz was approved. Certainly his background protesting art in Milwaukee is relevant?

2. I do think that the Milwaukee Art Museum does have a responsibility to address China's imprisonment of artists. That said, the exhibitions are done in cooperation with the Chinese Government, so it would be suicide for them to say anything until the exhibit is after. They have been planning this exhibit for years and years, well before Ai Weiwei was imprisoned. No museum in the world has the ability to free Ai Weiwei.

3. Shaving your head to protest another artist's imprisonment is beyond weak and ineffective. Good old Mike is just looking to get into the limelight again.

I agree that this is a serious human rights issue and Communist China is probably laughing its head off at the inability of the US to raise meaningful protest.At least Brenner is trying to say something significant,whatever his past foibles.

Why does MAM have an ethical obligation to address China's imprisonment of anyone. Again, I agree it's a human rights issue, but that does not automatically presume that an art museum has to actively protest that. The entire world should be loud about the fact that China has a terrible human rights record and practically everything we purchase is made in China. This is not anything at all unique to MAM. With this logic, you should all stop shopping anywhere that sells things made in China and bought through a US-China trade agreement, but I suspect that you won't. Artists are imprisoned all over the world in oppressive countries, but to suggest that an art museum may not show works by other artists from that country or have the name of that country in it's title is just not logical or smart. And it would be totally unfair and I would argue, unethical to deny those artists their right to show their work where it is wanted.

Maybe if he shaved all body hair including eyebrows, and had himself dipped in bratwurst grease . . . nah, I guess it would still be a weak and lame stunt in the face of a very serious political and moral situation. But then at least he could change his artist name to Butterbean and maybe sell some of his work.

@ all the lefty outraged folks on here. This bozo could do a demonstration that actually accomplished something, such as an art fair that raises money to defend WeiWei or even bribe the officials in China. That might actually accomplish something but i seriously doubt this baffoon shaving his head makes any one in China or any other country quake in their boots. This is what happens when the uneducated try to tell the rest of the world how to live based on their stoner way of life.

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Keep up with the art scene and trends in urban design with art and architecture critic Mary Louise Schumacher. Every week, you'll get the latest reviews, musings on architecture and her picks for what to do on the weekends.